


Tulip

by CaptainSophieStark



Category: Agent Carter (TV), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-25
Updated: 2020-09-25
Packaged: 2021-03-08 00:47:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,987
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26647003
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CaptainSophieStark/pseuds/CaptainSophieStark
Summary: It's Peggy and Daniel's 11th wedding anniversary, and as they go through the day they can't help being reminded of an earlier time, when they were just as in love but not quite as good at showing it. Day three of Peggysous week :) Also, I know ranch dressing didn't exist until 1954, but for the purposes of this story we're pretending it's existed at least since the end of World War 2.Tulip Meaning: Enduring love between partners, undying love, the 11th wedding anniversary
Relationships: Peggy Carter & Daniel Sousa & Jack Thompson, Peggy Carter & Jack Thompson, Peggy Carter/Daniel Sousa
Comments: 1
Kudos: 10





	Tulip

Peggy woke up in her soft bed to the sound of birds chirping outside the window. It was the most picturesque start to her 11th wedding anniversary she could've imagined.

She heard Daniel whistling as he got ready from their en-suite bathroom. Peggy decided now was the perfect time to sneak downstairs and get a head start on breakfast, a nice surprise for Daniel.

As soon as she reached the kitchen, she came face to face with a table full of tulips, and a sweet note from her husband. She delicately picked up the note, looking at her husband's loving scrawl as memories of the first time he'd bought her flowers came rushing back.

12 Years Earlier

Peggy was sneezing the minute she walked into the office. She saw the roses on her desk and instantly understood why. They were beautiful flowers, and they were also flowers she was incredibly allergic to.

She sat down at her desk to survey the scene, finding a little card nestled in between the flowers. She reached for it, sneezing as she did and accidentally hitting a thorn before she made it to the card.

She removed her hand and the card, sucking on the small wound the thorn had given her to try and stop the bleeding. She opened the card to see Daniel's messy handwriting.

Peggy smiled as she started to read, but was quickly interrupted by another monster sneeze. She groaned as she looked up at the flowers. As sweet a gesture as it was, they needed to go.

"Hey Peggy. Do you like your-"

"ACHOO!"

"-flowers. Oh no." Daniel looked at the woman he loved (and finally got to call girlfriend) with her red eyes and runny nose. "Don't tell me you're allergic to flowers?"

"Not flowers." Daniel started to sigh in relief, until Peggy continued. "Roses, specifically."

Daniel face-palmed, taking a minute to recover from the mind-numbing embarrassment of buying your girlfriend flowers for the first time only to choose the one kind she was allergic to.

"Alright, let's get these out of here," he said finally, reaching for the roses on his girlfriend's desk.

"Thank you... ACHOO!"

Present

"Like your flowers?"

Peggy turned to see her husband walking towards her, a massive smile on his face.

"I love them," she replied, moving over to give him a kiss.

"Much better than the first time I tried this, huh?"

"You mean since the time you almost killed me? Yes, I'd agree." Peggy grinned and Daniel just lovingly shook his head. She'd been teasing him about the roses incident pretty much every day since it happened.

The two moved on after another kiss, moving as an organized whirlwind in the kitchen, dancing around each other in perfect harmony. This, too, had taken a long time for the couple to get good at, but now they were masters of coordination and efficiency as they made breakfast, ate it, and headed out the door to work.

*****************

"Are you kidding me right now Carter?" asked Thompson, staring at his partner for the afternoon's mission in exasperation.

"No, I'm not. We scoped out the place we were trying to, and now I want to grab lunch for Daniel and I on our way back to the office. I don't see your issue."

"My issue is that we have more important things to do than bring your husband back a sandwich."

Peggy turned and shot a glare at the impatient agent before walking towards the sandwich counter.

"As I'm sure I don't need to remind you, Thompson, it's our wedding anniversary today. Daniel and I were going to take our lunch breaks together, and instead I'm here looking for criminals with you. The least I can do is bring him back something to eat.

Thompson rolled his eyes, but gave up his protests. Peggy didn't even have to glance at the menu as she recited hers and Daniel's orders, remembering a time when things had been much, much different.

12 Years Ago

"What's this?" asked Daniel as Peggy plopped down a salad on his desk.

"I went to get lunch and I made an exception to my rule about bringing food back for the men in the office for my loving boyfriend."

"Thanks, Peggy..." Daniel smiled at his beautiful girlfriend before opening the container to dig into his food. He stopped short, however, when he saw what was inside: the salad was mixed with ranch dressing, which was one of the tastes Daniel hated most in the world.

He tried to hide his disappointment looking at the food, since Peggy had gone out of her way to do something nice for him. Unfortunately, she was an extremely talented agent of the SSR, and she managed to catch the look on his face before he could hide it.

"Daniel? What's wrong?"

"Nothing, Peg! It, uh... it looks delicious!"

"Daniel. Don't lie to me."

Daniel sighed and kicked back in his chair, wisely giving up the charade.

"Alright, here it is: I don't know why, but as long as ranch dressing's been around, I've hated it. Something about it just doesn't agree with me, for some reason."

Peggy looked crestfallen as she turned her gaze on the offending salad.

"Oh no! Daniel, I'm so sorry. I can't believe I never knew..."

"Hey, don't worry about it!" Daniel said, pushing himself out of his chair to better comfort Peggy. "You had no reason to know. And besides, I still really appreciate the gesture. After all the things the men in this office have said to you, I feel special being the exception to the no-lunch rule and getting to rub it in Thompson's face. And hey, at least I'm not allergic to ranch."

Peggy turned and smiled at her amazing boyfriend. They shared a rare kiss in the middle of the bullpen, and Peggy made a mental note never to order Daniel anything with ranch ever again.

Present Day

Peggy and Daniel had been planning to take a lunch break together to celebrate their anniversary, but case work had gotten in the way. They had nice reservations planned at their favorite restaurant that night, but if either of them wanted any hope of making it on time, they needed to work straight through lunch. Still, they could do paper work from the conference room just as easily as they could from the bullpen.

Peggy and Daniel took their lunches and their mountains of papers and migrated to the conference room, taking over the space for a few hours so they could at least be together while they worked on their own assignments. They got a lot done, but around four in the afternoon with half a mountain of paperwork still to go, Peggy started to fade.

"Here, you look like you could use this," said Daniel, setting down a cup of coffee in front of his wife right on cue.

"Daniel, you're a life saver," she said, bringing the cup to her lips and downing the coffee without a second thought. It was made perfectly, exactly how she liked it.

Her husband winked at her before turning back to his own desk with his own cup of coffee and drilling down on work. Peggy tried to stay focused as well as she could, but the scene brought another old memory to mind.

Twelve Years Ago

"Hey, Peggy. I was grabbing some coffee and you looked like you could use a cup, too."

Peggy looked up from her desk to see Daniel standing in front of her. Outwardly he was calm, but she could see his hand shaking a little as he moved to set the cup in front of her. They weren't officially dating yet, but it seemed like they were heading that way.

"Thank you, Daniel. I appreciate it. It's nice having someone else get the coffee for a change."

Daniel cracked a smile. "Always happy to help. And always happy to break some of Thompson's bullshit traditions."

Peggy grinned, reaching for the coffee and bringing it to her lips for a sip. As soon as the taste hit her tongue, she had to work not to spit it all over her desk. It tasted terrible!

"What's wrong?" asked Daniel, instantly looking worried. "Is it too hot?"

"No, no, it's fine, it's just a little different from how I usually take my coffee," she said, trying to recover and gently setting down the cup. She didn't want to make Daniel feel bad, but she also didn't think she could force another sip of that coffee down.

"You hate the taste."

"Hate might be too strong of a word..." Peggy said sheepishly, finally glancing back at Daniel.

He sighed heavily. "I'm so sorry, Peggy. I tried to bring you something to help you out and instead I almost make you spit all over half your papers..."

"It's alright, Daniel, really! The gesture means a lot to me, and besides, you had no reason to know what I liked in my coffee."

Daniel scoffed. "Yeah, well, next time I promise I'll ask. Speaking of which, if I'm not already on your coffee blacklist, could I get you another cup?"

Present Day

Daniel and Peggy had both stepped in it a few times with each other over the years, and it didn't stop after they'd gotten married. Even though they'd known each other forever, and were friends for a long time before dating, they still hadn't known everything about each other. Now, though, Peggy and Daniel knew all the little details about things like food orders and flowers, and it made them a well-oiled machine, a dream partnership going through life. Like anyone, they hit their bumps in the road, but days like today reminded them both how far they'd really come.

Peggy and Daniel still had a few reports each to deal with when it was time for them to leave for their dinner reservations. Daniel had picked up the phone, ready to call and say they wouldn't make it, when Thompson stepped in. He said he was willing to take the extra case files, and he sent Daniel and Peggy off to their anniversary dinner.

"You sure about this, Thompson?"

"Yeah, I'm sure. This is what I'm getting you for your anniversary, though. No other fancy gifts or cards or whatever!"

Peggy and Daniel grinned and walked out the door hand in hand, taking in the warm night air as they left work. They ate at their favorite restaurant, the one where Daniel had proposed more than eleven years ago to the love of his life. It was a tradition for them to go back to the same spot every year to celebrate their love.

It also helped that the place had killer food that both Peggy and Daniel couldn't get enough of.

After dinner and a nice drive, the two walked back into their shared home, plopping down on the couch in front of the radio and sinking into each other. Their favorite program would be on in just a few minutes. They'd listen to it together, then find the strength to drag each other off the comfortable couch and into their shared bed for a nice night of sleep.

"Remember when you used to listen to those horrible Betty Carver Captain America heaps of trash?" asked Peggy, resting her head on Daniel's shoulder.

"I liked Betty Carver and her story right up until I met you and realized the real thing is so, so much better."

Peggy turned to smile at her husband, and he leaned in for a tender kiss as their program began. They'd come a long way in the past eleven years, and a lot of things had changed. But one thing remained constant through all the ups and downs: they still loved each other as much as the day they said their vows on the alter, eleven years ago.


End file.
